Passage Grave

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Bremore group says area could be as important as Tara

A CAMPAIGN to Save Bremore claims the coastal strip on the Meath/Dublin border may be one of the richest archaeological areas in Ireland, with aspects comparable to the Hill of Tara.

Among the heritage sites in locality is the Bremore passage tomb complex – a designated national monument – a series of several unclassified monuments in the Knocknagin townland and the mid-16th-century Newhaven Bay.

Drogheda Port and companies associated with Treasury Holdings have earmarked the area for the development of a deepwater port, industrial units, a motorway link to the M1 and a new rail link to the main Dublin-Belfast railway.

According to archaeologist Prof George Eogan: "Bremore may have been the first point of entry for the settlements of what is now known as Fingal/east Meath and the Boyne Valley area."

Save Bremore claims the Bremore passage tomb and adjacent Gormanston passage tomb should be considered within the greater context of passage tombs nearby at Knowth, Dowth and Newgrange.

The group quoted from archaeologist Dr Mark Clinton of An Taisce's national monuments and antiquities committee, who has said that one mound at the tomb complex had an entrance orientation indicating the possibility that it was aligned with the summer solstice.

"In this regard, and given their morphology and geographical location, there's every possibility the builders were the near ancestors of those that built the nearby world-acclaimed tombs of Brú na Bóinne [the Boyne Valley tombs]."

Dr Clinton said archaeologically, Bremore was comparable with Tara. "Tara started with a passage tomb known as the Mound of the Hostages and developed over different periods: likewise the Bremore tombs would appear to be the start of Brú na Bóinne.

"The parallel is clear – no Mound of the Hostages, no Tara; no Bremore, no Newgrange."

Attempts to contact the developers of the proposed deep sea port were unsuccessful yesterday.

The Treasury Holdings website quotes managing director John Bruder as saying Bremore had enormous development potential and is one of the most exciting real estate developments available.